— from Michael Milstein, NOAA Fisheries —
Following four recent incidents in Oregon and Washington in which people illegally picked up harbor seal pups off the beach, leading to the death of two of the animals, NOAA Fisheries is reminding beachgoers to “Share the Shore” with wild marine mammals and give them the space they need to remain wild.
The best thing people can do to help marine mammals on the beach is to leave them alone, staying 100 yards away if possible. Disturbing, feeding or attempting to move young seals or other marine mammals is illegal because it can stress the animals, interfere with their natural behavior and cause adult seals to abandon their pups. The Marine Mammal Protection Act protects all marine mammals from harassment.
NOAA Fisheries has developed a new Public Service Announcement emphasizing the need to protect marine mammals. In addition, NOAA Fisheries cautions that getting close enough to take“selfies” with seals can be dangerous for both people and seals, and can seriously disturb animals in the wild.
This is the time of year when harbor seal pups are born in Puget Sound and along the Washington Coast. Nursing pups remain with their mothers for four to six weeks and then begin foraging on their own. Harbor seal pups may haul out in the same place for several days or weeks at a time, but that does not mean they have been abandoned.
Pups that appear to be abandoned may be resting and regulating their body temperature, or may be waiting for their mother.
In two cases cases where people illegally picked up seal pups, the pups were either euthanized or later died. One pup was returned to the same location where it was picked up in the hope it could be reunited with its mother. In a fourth case, the animal was transferred to a rehabilitation facility.
Up to half of the thousands of harbor seal pups born in Oregon and Washington each year may not survive their first year of life. Giving them space on the beach gives them the best chance of survival in the wild. Animals that appear to be injured can be reported to the West Coast Marine Mammal Stranding Network hotline at 1-866-767-6114.
In addition, NOAA has developed an app that makes it easy to report injured or stranded marine wildlife. Called “Dolphin & Whale 911,” it is available from the App Store.
For more information:
Harbor Seals: Frequently Asked Questions
West Coast Marine Mammal Stranding Network
Marine Mammals of the West Coast
Can’t we just leave them alone….they were here first! Human “help” is mostly not needed! Merry
Just last weekend, July 2nd, there was an abandoned seal pup in front of our home on North Beach next to North Beach Inn. We called the very agency that is putting out the “Share the Shore” promo, and they sent two veterinary interns to our beach 48 hours later to weigh, assess and tag the seal pup. They tagged it on it’s head and flippers, and then they said they were going to leave it there to see if the Mom would return, although it had an eye infection. It was a holiday weekend, with dozens of people walking by the animal, taking pictures with it, etc. The Stranding Network interns put up signs along the beach asking people to keep their distance, but most did not oblige.
When pressed about taking the animal to Wolf Hollow, as has been done in the past, I was told that they did not receive the grant they had received in the past that paid for rehab, so they could only monitor the animal. Needless to say, on day 5 the pup died in front of our home. They told us that the seal population is plentiful, so we just need to “let nature take it’s course”.
It seems inhumane that we have no other options to intervene for these pups. Three other pups met the same fate over by Pt. Doughty according to my neighbor.
We are at the mercy of the very laws meant to protect these animals, as Wolf Hollow said they can not legally come to get the animal, only the stranding network.
We must try to find a better solution then a long slow death for these baby seals.